Sheriff Hart: ‘We have the right people’ in Tushar Atre Murder case
SANTA CRUZ—Dozens of law enforcement officials in two states arrested four men on Tuesday in connection with the Oct. 1 kidnapping and murder of tech executive and Pleasure Point resident Tushar Atre.
Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart said during a Thursday press conference that...
‘A force of nature’: Land conservation pioneer Diane Porter Cooley dies
PAJARO VALLEY—Diane Porter Cooley, whose family history dates back to Santa Cruz County’s infancy, and whose conservation efforts of both farmland and forest helped build the underpinnings of the county’s environmental ideology—and reshape the way the nation viewed agricultural land protection—died Thursday in her...
Elliot-McCrea reflects on decades of service with Second Harvest
WATSONVILLE—Willy Elliott-McCrea has been with Second Harvest Food Bank Santa Cruz County since 1978.
During that time, he worked as a truck driver and a warehouse manager before becoming director in 1988. He saw the organization through a number of crises that increased the need...
Supervisor Friend hosting tele-town hall to discuss farmworker protections
Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend tonight will host a tele-town hall from 6-7pm with guest Tom AmRhein to talk about the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
AmRhein, the former president of the Farm Bureau and the current chair of...
‘These are our kids’: Hundreds gather to call for the end of detention centers
A who’s who of officials from the local, county and state level spoke to the hundreds circled around a makeshift altar in the Plaza’s front lawn — an acknowledgment of the indigenous people of Watsonville, according to organizers.
‘A lifetime commitment’: Father, son leaders in fire, police departments
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Fire Chief Rudy Lopez still remembers the day he and his son, Watsonville Police Sgt. Rudy Lopez Jr., responded to an emergency call together—a vehicle collision at Main Street and Green Valley Road.
“My emotions overcame me,” Lopez Sr. said. “I was very touched.”
After...
Brewery supports PV Shelter
Families and friends gathered at Watsonville's Elkhorn Slough Brewing on Tuesday for a Fourth of July fundraiser.
Reward increased for information in kidnapping, murder case
SANTA CRUZ—A group of community members is offering a $200,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case of a man who was kidnapped from his Pleasure Point home and murdered on Oct. 1.
The reward is the largest of its kind in...
PVUSD board candidates grilled during forum
Roughly 50 people gathered in the cafeteria at Landmark Elementary School Monday night for a forum featuring four candidates running for seats on the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees for the Nov. 5 election.
Jessica Carrasco, who is running against incumbent Adam...
Homicide suspect arrested in Switzerland
A Santa Cruz man was arrested recently in Switzerland in connection with the death of his father, 90-year-old Robert Smallwood.
